Surgical neuronavigation system for accurate localization of neural targets for stimulation and recording

我们要求一种图像引导的神经导航系统，旨在实时可视化非人类灵长类动物的皮质和皮质下区域。这些设备将被安置在麦吉尔大学生理系的麦金太尔医疗大楼内，并由申请者指导的四个实验室共享。这也将使其他需要精确定位神经结构的实验室受益。该设备使用标记将受试者的头部与预加载的MRI图像对准。在实验或手术期间，外科医生操作的工具可以与图像配准，并显示在相对于大脑图像的屏幕上。然后，这个工具就可以用来将设备插入大脑。然后，安装在导航系统上的摄像头可以显示工具在大脑中的位置。这个系统极大地提高了大脑中目标的准确性，这一特征已经成为我们工作的关键。申请者进行神经科学研究，旨在增加我们对大脑的了解。此外，申请者还确定了开发神经假体设备的共同兴趣。我们还有正在进行的工程项目，旨在建造能够记录电子和化学信号的多模式硅探测器。在我们的许多实验中，必须控制的一个关键变量是记录或刺激电极在大脑中的位置。所需的设备将使我们能够直观地看到探测器在大脑中向目标移动时的尖端。大脑中的灰质占据了不到2毫米宽的区域。通过在没有看到它们下降的情况下植入这些探头，最终进入白质的可能性很高，导致实验失败的可能性并不是因为探头失败。这一方法也将被用来研究所需计算发生的基本细胞机制。

We are requesting an image guided neuronavigation system designed for real time visualization of cortical and subcortical areas in non-human primates. The equipment will be housed in the McIntyre Medical Building in the department of Physiology at McGill University and be shared by four labs directed by the applicants. It will also benefit other labs requiring accurate targeting of neural structures. The equipment uses markers to align a subject's head to preloaded MRI images. During experiments or surgeries, tools handled by surgeons can then be registered with the images and displayed on a screen relative to images of the brain. This tool can then be used to insert devices into the brain. A camera mounted on the navigation system can then display the position of the tool in the brain. This system greatly increases the accuracy of targets in the brain, a feature that has become critical for our work. The applicants conduct neuroscience research aimed to increased our understand of the brain. In addition, the applicants have identified a common interest to develop neural prosthetic devices. We also have ongoing engineering projects aimed at constructing multimodal silicon probes that can record eletrical and chemical signals. A critical variable that must be controlled in many of our experiments Iis the location of the recording or stimulating electrodes in the brain. The equipment requested would allow us to visualize the tips of the probes as they move in the brain towards the target. Grey matter in the brain occupies an area less than 2 mm wide. By implanting these probes without visualizing their descent, the chance of ending up in white matter is high resulting in failed experiment not because the probes fail. This approach will also be used to investigate the underlying cellular mechanism by which the required computations occur.